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<h1 class="gmail-reader-title">Video of So-Called 'Drug Boat' Sunk by US Empire Near Venezuela Sparks Controversy (+AI Generation)</h1>
<div class="gmail-credits gmail-reader-credits">orinocotribune</div>
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<div class="gmail-reader-estimated-time">September 4, 2025</div>
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<hr><div class="gmail-content"><div class="gmail-moz-reader-content gmail-reader-show-element"><div id="gmail-readability-page-1" class="gmail-page"><div><p><img width="395" height="222" src="https://orinocotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/still-21916724-1690-981-still1-EDIT-1024x576.webp" alt="Screenshot of video footage released by the US empire's department of defense, showing a strike against a small boat allegedly carrying drugs. Photo: CNN." class="gmail-moz-reader-block-img" style="margin-right: 0px;"></p>
<p><span></span></p><p>
Screenshot of video footage released by the US empire's department of
defense, showing a strike against a small boat allegedly carrying drugs.
Photo: CNN.</p>
</div><div id="gmail-content"><div><p>The
president of the US empire, Donald Trump, and secretary of state, Marco
Rubio, have claimed that US imperial military forces carried out a
\u201clethal attack\u201d on a \u201cvessel\u201d they said was transporting drugs from
Venezuela in Caribbean waters.</p><p>The attack, allegedly made this
Tuesday, September 2, comes following the news about eight warships from
the US colony being deployed in the Caribbean, which Washington claims
are being used to combat drug trafficking. It also accuses President
Nicolás Maduro\u2019s government of involvement in drug trafficking\u2014most
notably with no evidence for their claims\u2014and has increased the reward
for information leading to his \u201ccapture,\u201d violating international laws
and conventions.</p><p>\u201cThis morning, pursuant to my orders, US Military
Forces conducted a kinetic strike against positively identified Tren de
Aragua (TDA) narco-terrorists in the Southern Command area of
responsibility,\u201d Trump claimed on social media. \u201cThe TDA is a designated
Foreign Terrorist Organization operating under the control of Nicolás
Maduro.\u201d</p><p>President Trump added that \u201cthe attack occurred while the
terrorists were in international waters transporting illegal narcotics
bound for the United States. The attack resulted in the deaths of 11
terrorists in action. No members of the US Armed Forces were injured.
Please let this serve as a warning to anyone considering importing drugs
into the United States. Be carefull! Thank you for your attention!\u201d</p><p>Secretary
Rubio reiterated what Trump said on social media: \u201cToday the US
military carried out a lethal attack in the southern Caribbean against a
drug vessel that had departed Venezuela and was being operated by a
designated narcoterrorist organization.\u201d</p><p>Both Trump and Rubio
accompanied their posts with the following video. Information such as
the location, date, time of recording, and other details were blurred in
the video:</p><p><strong>Contradictions</strong><br>
The video generated numerous reactions on social media, including
disbelief and outrage. Even mainstream media usually complacent with
Washington\u2019s imperialist narratives gave space to analyze the truth of
the likely fictional video footage.</p><p>Some people, like journalist Helena Villar, RT\u2019s correspondent in the US colony, <a href="https://x.com/HelenaVillarO/status/1963003188413714792" target="_blank" rel="noopener">wondered</a>
how such a small boat could fit 11 people and a large amount of drugs.
\u201cIf they really killed 11 people in the attack on that boat, there were
fewer drugs than at a fraternity party on an American campus,\u201d the
journalist opined. \u201cIt simply doesn\u2019t fit.\u201d</p><p>Others highlighted
possible violations of international law, human rights, and due process,
as the vessel was not boarded and detained, nor were its occupants
arrested and interrogated in compliance with current international
protocols. The identities of the deceased, nor their ages or genders,
have been revealed, nor has it been reported whether the bodies were
recovered and will be returned to their families. \u201cHow did they know the
vessel was carrying drugs before attacking it? Cartels don\u2019t place
large emblems on their cargo,\u201d noted the <a href="https://x.com/venanalysis/status/1962961651088461941" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Venezuelanalysis</a>
website, which also emphasized: \u201cThe US president does not have the
power to order assassinations on foreign soil or in international
waters.\u201d</p><p>The La Tabla news website <a href="https://x.com/venanalysis/status/1962961651088461941" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a>
an article criticizing the immediate use of lethal force and the
failure to comply with protocols requiring gradual escalation (signals,
warnings, non-lethal force). It notes that the use of Aegis destroyers
(for naval warfare) against a speedboat is disproportionate, and that
there is no evidence of boarding attempts or cargo identification, a
mandatory step in real interdiction.</p><p>\u201cThe \u2018narcoterrorism\u2019 narrative is not supported by operational data, suggesting an ex post facto justification,\u201d says La Tabla.</p><p>Colombian President Gustavo Petro also <a href="https://x.com/venanalysis/status/1962961651088461941" target="_blank" rel="noopener">weighed</a>
in on the matter: \u201cIf this is true, it\u2019s murder anywhere in the world.
We\u2019ve been capturing civilians transporting drugs for decades without
killing them. Those transporting drugs aren\u2019t the big drug traffickers,
but the very poor young people of the Caribbean and the Pacific.\u201d</p><p>Some
people reasoned that a boat carrying drug shipments does not normally
carry so many people and that it could be a sign of another type of
activity (illegal immigrants, human trafficking, etc.). Therefore, they
believe the way the boat was attacked could have resulted in the deaths
of innocent people.</p><p>Rubio was questioned by reporters on Tuesday
about the location of the boat\u2019s sinking, its size, and other details,
to which he responded that the Pentagon would provide more information
in the coming hours. However, he did <a href="https://x.com/venanalysis/status/1962961651088461941" target="_blank" rel="noopener">state</a>
that the boat was \u201cprobably headed to Trinidad,\u201d which reinforces the
aforementioned doubts, given the illegal migrant routes between that
island and Venezuela.</p><p>Several people claim that the video shows no
more than four or five people, not 11, as Trump claimed. Another
interesting detail is that Trump accused the alleged drug traffickers of
being part of the \u201cTren de Aragua,\u201d despite the fact that in recent
weeks he had stopped mentioning that particular organization, preferring
instead to mention the fictional \u201cCartel of the Suns.\u201d</p><p><strong>AI usage</strong><br>
Venezuela\u2019s Minister for Communications Freddy Ñáñez stated that there
is a high probability that the video was generated by artificial
intelligence (AI).</p><p>\u201cIt seems that Marco Rubio continues to lie to
his president,\u201d Ñáñez said. \u201cAfter leading him into a dead end, he is
now handing him an AI video as \u2018proof.'\u201d</p><p>The minister explained
that, according to Google\u2019s Gemini AI, the video shows signs of being
artificially created. Ñáñez strongly condemned the use of such tactics
to justify war narratives: \u201cEnough, Marco Rubio, of encouraging war and
trying to stain President Donald Trump\u2019s hands with blood.\u201d</p><p>The minister detailed why Gemini stated that the video was most likely created using AI, <a href="https://x.com/venanalysis/status/1962961651088461941" target="_blank" rel="noopener">providing</a> the following assessment of the elements of the video:</p><p><em>\u201c</em><em>\u2022
The video shows a boat being targeted and then exploding in a way that
looks like a simplified, almost cartoon-like animation, rather than a
realistic depiction of an explosion.</em><br>
<em>\u2022 The video contains motion artifacts and lack of realistic detail often seen in AI-generated videos. </em><em>The water, in particular, looks highly stylized and unnatural.<br>
\u2022 The content of the video seems to be composed of different elements,
including the \u201cUNCLASSIFIED\u201d and a watermark from an unknown source.
These elements, combined with the lack of detail, are common in
AI-generated content.</em><em>\u201c</em></p><p>(<a href="https://albaciudad.org/2025/09/video-trump-rubio-embarcacion-con-drogas-destruida/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RedRadioVE</a>) by Luigino Bracci Roa</p><p>Translation: Orinoco Tribune</p><p>OT/JRE/AU</p></div></div></div></div><br></div></div></div>